Photo: David M Clark · CC BY-SA 2.0

29.7Median age

Who lives here · ONS Census 2021

Younger than 99% of UK towns: half of Benenden is under 29.7

1% of households are unrelated adults sharing a home (England’s towns: 4.3%). Compared with other places, adults who have never married are common here: 42%, more than in 93% of UK towns. There were 385 households in Benenden at the 2021 Census, home to 1,409 residents. In Benenden, 14% of households live in a terraced house.

23%of adults are full-time students 12%born abroad 385households

What stands out · In brief

What the Census says about Benenden’s people

1 in 4adults is a full-time student; England’s towns: 1 in 13 29.7median age, younger than 99% of UK towns 17%of residents had moved in within the year before the Census; England’s towns 11%

A student village

The 2021 Census counted 232 full-time students aged 16 and over, 23% of adults, against 7.9% across England’s towns: more than in 99% of UK towns. That shows in the ages: 25% of residents are 15 to 24. Students & newcomers ↓

Younger than most towns

Half of Benenden’s residents are under 29.7 and half over, against 44.4 in the typical UK town. 25% are 15 to 24 and 18% are 65 or over. Ages ↓

A village people move to

17% of residents gave a different address a year before the 2021 Census, 1.6 times the share across England’s towns, and 1.9% gave a term-time address. Students & newcomers ↓

Written from the data on this page: ONS Census 2021 (output areas summed to the 2022 built-up area).

Ages

A young village: 25% of residents are 15 to 24

Share of residents in each five-year age band, Census 2021.

BenendenEngland’s towns

0–410–1420–2430–3440–4450–5460–6470–7480–84

Benenden sits close to the norm on residents aged 65 and over: 18%, about the same as across England’s towns. As a reference point, 12% of residents are aged 15 to 24 across England’s towns.

Broad ages · share of residents

Under 1522%

15 to 2425%

25 to 4413%

45 to 6421%

65 and over18%

BenendenKent’s townsEngland’s towns

Women and men · all residents

66% women, 34% men

Benenden

England

WomenMen

About 52 men for every 100 women. Across England, 51% of residents are women. A large institution, such as a prison, barracks, boarding school, university or care home, can tilt a town’s split: the census counts the people living there as residents.

Students & newcomers

Above 99% of UK towns: 23% of adults are full-time students

What adults did at the 2021 Census (the ONS’s NS-SEC classes), and where residents lived a year earlier.

Adults by occupation class · residents 16 and over

Full-time students23%

Higher managerial and professional13%

Lower managerial and professional23%

Intermediate7.2%

Small employers and self-employed12%

Supervisory and technical4.5%

Semi-routine5.5%

Routine5.8%

Never worked or long-term unemployed5.5%

BenendenKent’s townsEngland’s towns

Address a year before the Census

Residents who lived somewhere else a year earlier. The bar runs to 25%.

Benenden

19%

England’s towns

11%

Moved within the UKTerm-time addressMoved from abroad

Moved in within a year

244

residents, 17%; England’s towns 11%

Of them from abroad

2.2× England’s share

Leave the students aside and Benenden’s other adults differ from England’s: 47% are in managerial and professional jobs, against 36%. The comparison figure for full-time students is 7.9% across England’s towns. The census found that 17% of residents lived at another address a year earlier in the village.

The Census was taken on 21 March 2021, in term time, so students were counted at their term addresses.

Households

A smaller share of households with dependent children than 68% of UK towns: 25%

Household make-up at the 2021 Census. Each square is 1% of households.

Living alone, 66+ 21%Living alone, under 66 11%Families with dependent children 25%Couples and families, no young children 42%Shared houses and other 1%

Against Kent’s towns and England’s towns

Benenden

Kent’s towns

England’s towns

People per household

1 person31%

2 people34%

3 people15%

4 people14%

5 or more5.6%

England’s towns.

The average household has 2.3 people, against 2.4 across England’s towns. Households with dependent children make up 29% across England’s towns. Nearly a third of households are one person living alone.

Homes & cars

More households in detached houses than 80% of UK towns: 42%

Accommodation type and cars or vans per household, Census 2021. Owning and renting are on Cost of living.

Type of home

Benenden

Kent’s towns

England’s towns

DetachedSemi-detachedTerracedFlat or maisonetteCaravan or other

Cars or vans · share of households

No car or van10%

One33%

Two37%

Three or more20%

BenendenKent’s townsEngland’s towns

Across England’s towns, nearly a quarter of households have no car or van; in Benenden, 10%. To put it in context, just over a fifth of households live in a detached house across England’s towns. The census found that 16% of households live in a flat or apartment in the village.

Where people were born

Benenden ranks above 79% of UK towns on residents born outside the UK: 12%

Country of birth, year of arrival and main language, Census 2021.

Born outside the UK, by region · share of all residents; the bar runs to 25%

Benenden

12%

Kent’s towns

13%

England’s towns

18%

EU countriesRest of EuropeMiddle East and AsiaAfricaAmericas, Oceania, other

When those born abroad arrived

BenendenEngland’s towns

Before 19711971–801981–901991–20002001–102011–132014–162017–192020–21

Main language · residents aged 3 and over

English is main language98%

Another main language, speaks English very well or well2.2%

Another main language, little or no English0.1%

BenendenKent’s townsEngland’s towns

The largest groups were born in the Middle East and Asia (3.6%) and in EU countries (2.8%). Across England’s towns, 18% of residents were born outside the UK. Residents whose main language is English are more common here than in 51% of UK towns. Of residents born abroad, 39% arrived in 2017 or later, against 21% across England’s towns.

Ethnicity & religion

A lower share of residents who describe themselves as White British than 77% of UK towns, at 86%

How residents described themselves at the 2021 Census. Lines join the lowest and highest of the three figures.

Ethnic groups other than White British · all residents

BenendenKent’s townsEngland’s towns

Other White6.6%

Asian2.6%

Mixed2.5%

Black2%

Other0.5%

0%6%12%

White British, not charted: 86% of Benenden · Kent’s towns 82% · England’s towns 73%.

Religion · all residents

BenendenKent’s townsEngland’s towns

No religion37%

Christian52%

Muslim1.1%

Hindu, Sikh, Jewish, Buddhist2%

Other religion0.7%

Didn’t answer7.3%

0%30%60%

Residents with no religion are about as common here as across England’s towns, at 37%. More residents who describe themselves as Christian than in 63% of UK towns: 52%. Across England’s towns, the share of residents who describe themselves as White British is 73%. Muslims make up 1.1% of residents.

Relationships & caring

Unpaid carers make up 6.2% in Benenden, less than in 99% of UK towns

Legal partnership status (residents 16 and over) and unpaid care (residents 5 and over), Census 2021.

Partnership status · residents 16 and over

Never married or in a civil partnership42%

Married or civil partnership43%

Separated0.9%

Divorced9%

Widowed5.6%

BenendenKent’s townsEngland’s towns

85residents give unpaid care to someone with an illness, disability or old age: 6.2%, against 8.7% in England’s towns

Unpaid care given · share of residents 5 and over

Up to 19 hours a week4.2%

20 to 49 hours1%

50 hours or more1.1%

Here 43% of adults are married or in a civil partnership, where the figure across England’s towns is 44%. Set beside that, nearly one in ten residents give unpaid care across England’s towns. For 15 residents, unpaid care runs to 50 hours or more a week.

Qualifications

Adults with a degree-level qualification: 34%

Highest qualification, residents 16 and over, Census 2021.

Highest qualification · residents 16 and over

No qualifications14%

Apprenticeship4.1%

A levels or similar14%

Degree level34%

BenendenKent’s townsEngland’s towns

Benenden’s adults: 34% with a degree-level qualification and 14% with none, against 34% and 18% across England’s towns. 14% have A levels as their highest qualification, many of them still studying for a degree.

Neighbours

Every neighbour of Benenden has an older population

Nearby built-up areas coloured by median age, Census 2021. Tap a town for its page.

CranbrookHawkhurstBiddendenNorthiamTenterdenHurst GreenGoudhurstBenenden

under 3838–4444–5050–5656+

Town	People	Away	Median age	65+	Homes with children
Benenden	1,409	—	29.7	18%	25%
Cranbrook	3,962	2.7 mi	45.3	24%	26%
Hawkhurst	3,683	3.4 mi	47	24%	26%
Biddenden	1,345	4.2 mi	44.1	21%	31%
Northiam	1,910	4.9 mi	56.6	36%	19%
Tenterden	7,775	5 mi	54.4	35%	20%
Hurst Green	1,181	5.9 mi	46.3	22%	30%
Goudhurst	1,104	6 mi	46.3	19%	31%

More about Benenden’s residents

Health, work and homes have their own pages

Health B⁺Life expectancy, early deaths and Census health, adjusted for age Work & commute B⁺Income, the claimant count, jobs and how people get to work Cost of living C⁻Owners and renters, prices, rents and council tax Schools A⁺Every primary and secondary, with results and inspections

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

The Census was taken in a lockdown, in term time. 21 March 2021 fell in term time, and students were asked to give their term-time address, so most were counted where they study. Some may have been living with family that day.
“Kent’s towns” and “England’s towns” mean their built-up areas. Census comparisons pool every built-up area in Kent (or England), summed the same way as Benenden’s figures, so households in open countryside are left out.
Small counts are blurred. The ONS adds small random changes to Census counts to protect privacy, so the same total differs a little between tables, and the shares of a small town can move by a point or two.

Questions about Benenden’s residents

What is the population of Benenden?

The 2021 Census counted 1,409 people in Benenden’s built-up area.

What is the average age in Benenden?

The median age was 29.7 at the 2021 Census. 25% of residents were 15 to 24 and 18% were 65 or over.

Is Benenden a student village?

Yes: 23% of adults were full-time students at the 2021 Census (232 people), against 7.9% across England’s towns.

How diverse is Benenden?

86% of residents described themselves as White British in 2021, against 73% across England’s towns and 82% across Kent’s towns. 12% were born outside the UK.

What religion are people in Benenden?

37% said they had no religion and 52% that they were Christian at the 2021 Census; 1.1% were Muslim and 7.3% didn’t answer.

Is Benenden good for families?

25% of households had dependent children in 2021, against 29% across England’s towns. Schools are on Benenden’s schools page.

Sources: ONS Census 2021, output areas summed to the ONS 2022 built-up area (TS002, TS003, TS004, TS007A, TS008, TS015, TS017, TS019, TS021, TS029, TS030, TS039, TS044, TS045, TS062, TS067). All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.